Kevin Smith
I’m tired of posting about moving/unpacking. I’m sure you’re sick of reading about it. I’m going to change the pace a bit a talk about someone that creates things that I totally love.
I’ve loved all of Kevin Smith’s works since I first saw Clerks on VHS that I rented from Hastings sometime around 1995-ish. I wish that I had seen it in the theater, but I was cash-strapped at the time, and renting movies was the only option that I had at the time. I really didn’t know who Kevin Smith was until around the release of Dogma. I had watched all of his movies up to that point, but I hadn’t seen his name enough to start putting the name “Kevin Smith” with the great works of art that he’s created.
I’ve seen everything that Kevin Smith has created, and I have copies of everything on DVD. I even have a signed copy of “An Evening With Kevin Smith” in my collection. If you know me well enough, you know that I hate cartoons. Despite that fact, I even have a copy of the “Clerks” cartoon series that was (I think) aired on ABC. I’m really looking forward to the August(?) release of “An Evening With Kevin Smith 2: Evening Harder.” His stories, oratory skills, and modesty facinate me. I love watching him speak. Someday, I would like to see him live. I think that would be a riot.
Out of all of his movies (Clerks, Mallrats, Chasing Amy, Dogma, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, and Jersey Girl) I think I like Dogma the best. It had the best dialogue out of all of his movies, tackled some touchy subjects, had some action, a great plot, and some very cool guest stars. I really enjoyed it quite a bit. Unfortunately, all of my DVDs are packed away in boxes (dammit, I talked about moving again, didn’t I?), but as soon as they’re unpacked, the first thing that I’m going to watch is a Kevin Smith movie.
Kevin has a new movie (Clerks 2) coming out tomorrow. I’ve been following the story of the creation of the movie very religiously on the Clerks 2 web site. I’ve also been following Kevin’s blog for well over a year, and I really enjoy reading Kevin’s writings. He somehow manages to turn the mundane daily activities into facinating descriptions. I just wish I had half his talent when it comes to writing.
Even though the movie comes out tomorrow, I won’t be watching it on opening day. I have other plans with some friends, but I’ll be watching it Saturday afternoon with some friends. I can’t believe that I’m putting the show off a day, but I enjoy my friends and we only go out on the town every 2-3 months. I’m tempted to wear my Randall costume (It’s composed of this t-shirt, this hat, and this Mooby shirt) on Friday, but I’m going to hold off and wear it Saturday at the movie itself.
News broke a day or three ago that Joel Siegel walked out of a critics’ screening of Clerks 2. Not a big deal, really. Not everyone likes the brand of humor that Kevin presents, and I can respect someone refusing to watch an entire movie that they don’t like. I’ve walked out of one myself, so I know the feeling. However, Mr. Siegel stormed out in a huff, cussing, and causing a scene. He’s a professional movie go-er. If anyone knows the etiquette required at a movie, he should. Disrupting the movie that other people are enjoying is totally unprofessional, uncalled for, and downright rude. I’ve never liked Siegel’s reviews because of the method he uses to present the information, but I at least respected his professional opinion in his area of expertise. That respect is now gone. I’ve never really read his reviews, but I haven’t gone out of my way to avoid them. I guess I will now, even though he apologized on a radio broadcast that included Kevin as part of the broadcast.
I know that Kevin is starting up a new movie early 2007. I’ve been waiting for Clerks 2 for over a year now, and I’m sure that what he has in store for us again will be great. I just hope it’s not another Jersey Girl. It’s hard to watch a PG-13 Kevin Smith movie. I know that he had to hold back on his raunchiness, sexual conversation, and frank speech about life itself. I’m sure that all of that pent up creativity will be released full force in Clerks 2, which will make the movie that much better. BTW, don’t get me wrong. I enjoyed Jersey Girl very much. It was a great flick, but it wasn’t the typical Kevin Smith production.
